


As We Are

by ThereIsNoTragedyInThat



Series: The Space Between the First and Last Breath [12]
Category: The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: Fluff and Angst, Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani and Nicky | Nicolò di Genova are in Love, M/M, Missing Scene, Protective Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani, Protective Nicky | Nicolò di Genova, Short & Sweet, True Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-15
Updated: 2020-10-15
Packaged: 2021-03-09 01:47:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,020
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27026821
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThereIsNoTragedyInThat/pseuds/ThereIsNoTragedyInThat
Summary: Joe and Nicky share a moment after the kill room floor.
Relationships: Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolò di Genova
Series: The Space Between the First and Last Breath [12]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1947598
Comments: 1
Kudos: 146





	As We Are

Nicky grimaced at the taste of blood in his mouth, warm and metallic, congealing in his throat until it was difficult to swallow. Frustration stirred in his gut as he walked the perimeter of the room, him on one side and Booker on the other, looking for any other men in the shadows. Nose curling in disgust, Nicky spit onto the floor, trying to get rid of the sensation, trying to breath around his disgust.

Nothing, no more men and no girls. It really had been a setup, which did not bode well for them, not even a little bit. Sighing, he pushed back his hood, could feel Joe’s eyes on him, unwavering as he waited patiently for him to return to his side.

He did so gladly, trying to keep his eyes off of the carnage they had wrought upon the men who’d tried to kill them. Despite himself, despite the anger that arose when he saw the blood on Joe’s face…pity stirred inside him. These men had been sacrificed to them, hadn’t been told that they would miraculously be reborn, had no idea that today would be the day they would die.

They may not have been good men, but everyone deserved to know the reason they were to die, the purpose of their death when they went to war.

Joe’s hand slipped into his, squeezing tightly and Nicky blinked rapidly, taking in the sight of his beloved looking at him with wounded eyes. He could not pretend the same expression was not reflected in his own eyes, unable to help the too human feeling of affront that someone should harm the man in front of him.

A warm calloused hand cupped his cheek and Joe was looking at him even as that same hand gently ran the length of his cheekbone. Nicky could feel the blood smear, could feel the slight tremble in his fingers and he knew that the man he loved was struggling with another emotion. All these years and there were still some things that simply never changed, that would never change for as long as they were seen fit to exist in the world.

If there was one thing Joe hated…it was the feeling of helplessness.

Nicky could still recall the first time they were ambushed on the road, too many years ago to count. They had been asleep, on different sides of the campfire, not yet used to one another’s presence when they’d been rudely awakened by knives sliding across their throats. Nicky had at least put up a fight, light sleeper that he was, but Yusuf hadn’t even had the chance.

The anger had burned through him the entire day, his restlessness, his frustration clear to anyone who watched. It was only later, after many more deaths and a learning of each other’s languages, that Nicky learned it was not only the idea of being bested in a fight with no chance, it was the helplessness of watching others die without being able to stop it…of watching Nicky die without at least trying to save him.

But some things were inevitable.

Nicky reached up and curled a hand around Joe’s neck, tilting him forward until their foreheads met gently in the middle, he felt him exhale heavily, tension seeping from his body in heavy waves. They stood there for several long moments and Nicky was just grateful that Andy and Booker were giving them this, even though there really should be an urgency about getting out of there…given what they had just learned. Still, when his chanced a glance to the side, he only found them in deep conversation, Andy’s movements jerky and angry, Booker appearing much more resigned to the state of things.

“Nicolò?”

Joe’s hand had hooked itself on his vest, his eyes remained closed, so Nicky did not try to pull away. No, he hummed quietly to let him know he was there and listening, unable to will the words to come out, not with that damned taste in his mouth.

He released another shuddering breath and Nicky tightened his hand on him, felt the congealing blood clinging to his clothes, felt the air as it moved through his lungs and some of the weight disappeared between them, another death sliding off of them and into memory.

This time he forced the words out, sensing Joe needed to hear them before they could move and get to work covering his tracks. Even with the thickness in his throat, everything came easier when he was doing it for the man he loved so fervently, “Sono qui con te, we’re okay.”

Finally, Joe opened his eyes and Nicky offered him a small smile. Something settled firmly between them, something comforting and familiar, allowing them to part. Joe nodded, a final signal that they were alright.

As though that was all Andy was waiting for, she met their eyes and jerked her head toward the entrance. Her and Booker tightened their grip on their guns, and it was the easiest thing in the world to let Joe step in front of him with one last squeeze of his hand.

Still, he hung on a moment longer and Joe did not seem to want to let him go, sacrificing his sword hand to hold his gun steady in front of him. They shared one more glance and it was strange how their deaths both seemed to get easier with time and yet never hurt any less. Nicky couldn’t help but wonder if they had simply grown used to the constant fear of loss, of waiting for one more breath. He supposed it was a sign that they were still capable of such human thought and Nicky willed himself to be grateful, always grateful for it.

There would be time later, once they got to whichever safehouse Andy chose, to simply hold each other, to wipe the blood and evidence of their death from their bodies and their memory. For now, they had been reborn, were alive and breathing by each other’s side just as it always had been.


End file.
